When the police slow down - Central Oregon crime rate stats are in question
Update - 10/01/2021
In an outdoor press conference worthy of a Roman gladiator spectacle Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel announced the outcome of a Grand Jury hearing in the shooting death of Mr. Barry Washington at the hands of Mr. Ian Cranston. Hummel was quick to praise the assistance his office received from the Central Oregon Peacekeepers while ignoring the initial investigatory efforts of the Bend Police Department and supporting local and federal law enforcement agencies, to include the FBI which would be the lead federal agency in any kind of hate crime investigation of the murder.
"We have video cameras downtown," shared one BPD officer. "Those people ["peacekeepers"] contributed nothing to the investigation. That guy [Hummel] is an idiot."
Hummel did not mention the same group's recent storming of the offices of the Central Oregon Daily News in their effort to intimidate the station's broadcasting of a video clip showing the shooting. Bend Police were called to the scene but it is unknown if citations were issued. In the past the District Attorney has dismissed trespass citations issued by the Bend Police Department to members of the Peacekeepers after accusing Chief Mike Krantz and his agency of being "obsessed" with the group.
The video in question remains available - https://centraloregondaily.com/%E2%96%B6%EF%B8%8F-video-of-fatal-shooting-in-downtown-bend/
Comments from readers in the local media reveal the anger, frustration, and lack of meaningful unity within the Bend and greater county community upon hearing of Cranston's arrest.
Hummmp69?says:
"what about the rights of the young woman that was attacked by Mr. Washington? Why is the video and photographic evidence of his attack not mentioned? The pretrial hearing will be a mess and the DA will get his hat handed to him."
Stanley78?says:
"No young woman was attacked by Mr. Washington. I don’t understand the reason you’d want to push this false narrative."
4myopinion?says:
"Do you have a law degree? If not. Be quiet. If there isn’t evidence of a hate crime you CAN’T and SHOULDN’T charge him with a hate crime. Just glad they got him on a murder charge. Sometimes people commit horrific crimes impulsively and it ISN’T based on color. You have to have evidence supporting the charges."
Priceofsocialism?says:
"This DA is an idiot, from the announcement this person is presumed guilty, unless he can somehow prove his innocence, he may very well be more than guilty, but this is a shameful show, from a shameful prosecutor. Absolutely unprofessional."
OnlyGold?says:
"Let me get this straight… The DA set up a podium on a sidewalk to announce this? Pure grandstanding is what that is. Disgraceful. The sad thing is he could have announced this from his office and it would have looked much better and the outcome would have been the same. Look, this guy pulled the trigger. Watch the video. Make up your own mind and see how it plays out in court. No need for the DA to take away from the moment. Goodbye, not sure you will be missed."
"This was racism!!! And for the ones who dont believe it is, your part of the problem!!!! If this were a black man who killed a white man, would he be out of jail???? They called him racial slurs!!! Laughed at him after he was killed. You people are sad when you try to over look the racism part of things. So its ok for him to be killed because he allegedly flirted with a white woman. Where in the rule book does it say if you flirt with someones mate you deserve to die. Only when it comes to racism, idiots!!!!!!!! This angers me because I have black sons. So stop saying its not about racism if you dont know how real racism is out here." - Posted by?When will it stop!!?on?09/30/2021 at 5:52 PM
Mr. Riccardo Waites (Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly) posted the Oregon law reference the most serious charge for his group's benefit. "Cranston got 6 charges including murder 2. So I want to post the definition of Murder 2 in Oregon. Waites has been meeting with local law enforcement, the District Attorney's Office, and community partners over the past week in an effort to see justice done but without a 3-ring circus atmosphere.
Ian Cranston, now being held in the county jail, is no stranger to law enforcement.
In a previous case now apparently sealed a much younger Cranston was arrested and charged with Possession / Intent to Distribute the Schedule 1 drug, MDMA. Three charges were dismissed with a conviction on a fourth charge.
MFG/DELIVERY CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN SCHEDULE I
Location?OR
Court Date?02/10/2016
Date of Offense?05/31/2013
Court Case Number?CM1321371
Court Case Description?BENTON
Court Disposition?CONVICTED Status: CLOSED
Court Offense?MFG/DELIVERY CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN SCHEDULE I
Court Fines?$20,000
Identifying Info on Record
Name on record?IAN MACKENZIE CRANSTON
Offender's address?20437 S Sweetwood Ln Oregon City, OR 97045
Date of birth?August, 1994
In February 2013, he was also cited and convicted of being a minor in possession of alcohol, as affirmed by officials in Benton County.
According to the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office it cancelled Mr. Cranston's concealed handgun license, per agency policy, upon his original arrest.
Update 09-30-2021
Not reported locally until now is the calling of the Bend Police Department by the Central Oregon Daily News as the Central Oregon Peacekeepers entered their lobby in Bend to protest the Barry Washington shooting video. Upon their refusing to leave the police were called to enforce possible criminal trespass violations.
The video remains available on the news channel.
https://centraloregondaily.com/%E2%96%B6%EF%B8%8F-video-of-fatal-shooting-in-downtown-bend/
Several days ago the station contacted a cousin of the Washington family in California, who then spoke to the family about the video. The family is reported to have given its permission for the video to remain up but wanted an apology for not asking them first. That apology was given. Then, last night, the family reversed itself and demanded the video be removed.
Local groups and individuals are known to be interacting with the family in what has become a tug-of-war between the free press and 1st Amendment rights in Central Oregon, or the agendas of groups like the Central Oregon Peacekeepers.
Local business owners wishing not to be identified for fear of reprisal are raising their concerns about being intimidated to support a boycott of the news channel (by cancelling their advertising) or face being picketed and attacked on social media by a segment of those who favor the boycott. One such business has stated they will take serious action legally if they are threatened or their business interrupted in the manner the Central Oregon Daily News' was.
An inquiry to the FBI in Portland, Oregon, regarding a possible federal investigation into the shooting as a hate crime rendered this reply.
"Hello Mr. Walker,
"Thank you for your inquiry.?Under U.S. Department of Justice rules prohibit us from discussing what may or may not be an open investigation.
?"The FBI takes all hate crime incidents very seriously, and we encourage anyone who may have information about a potential hate crime to contact us at 1-800-CALL-FBI or through our online portal at?tips.fbi.gov.
?"Thank you,"
?Antonia Kreamier, Community Outreach Specialist, FBI - Portland Division
Update - 09-29-2021
On September 19th, 22-year old Barry Washington was shot and killed outside a Bend bar during a fist-fight. Washington, a young black man, was shot by 27-year old Ian Cranston, who is white.
Outgoing Deschutes County District Attorney, John Hummel, immediately began issuing press releases offering, in his professional opinion, the shooting was unreasonable under Oregon's Use of Deadly Force law. "Hummel said the events Saturday started with Washington approaching and complimenting a woman described as Cranston’s girlfriend. A video camera captured an ensuing scuffle involving several people, Hummel said, with shoving and punches thrown outside of the Capitol bar in Bend.
“The punches had stopped and it was just some shouting. And then at that point, Cranston pulled a gun out of his waistband and shot,” according to the district attorney.
"Hummel said there was “no justification” for Cranston’s use of the weapon."
OPB - https://www.opb.org/article/2021/09/22/bend-shooting-barry-washington-jr-ian-mackenzie-cranston/
Hummel's press releases, the most recent attacking Central Oregon Daily News for airing a privately shot video of the fight and the shooting, are reported to be raising the ire of local judges as well as law enforcement in the form of Chief Mike Krantz (Bend Police Department). One retired Deschutes County Sheriff points out the comments made by Hummel could set up a request by the Defense to change the venue of any future trial, and / or create the basis for an appeal should a guilty verdict be arrived at. "A District Attorney Office should not issue press releases that opine about a case still be investigated by the police," this professional law enforcement administrator told me. "That Hummel does so is just bad practice especially as it will be one of his two deputy DAs, both who have far, far more experience trying homicide cases, who will have to clean up after him in court."
Hummel went further describing - before any toxicology reports for either Cranston or Washington have been received - in his opinion alcohol or drugs were not a factor in the incident. It is, for many who have investigated violence involved crimes, such a pronouncement is compromising to any case they are trying to build on behalf of the DA's Office.
Where the Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly (COBLA) has recently met with Mr. Hummel, Chief Krantz, Bend's city manager, and today with the Prineville police chief and city manager in an effort to pursue Justice appropriately in this matter, the Central Oregon Peacekeepers via Mr. Luke Richter is offering he will "...just start showing up places" if Central Oregon businesses don't boycott the news outlet. This despite the Peacekeepers own use of privately filmed videos of incidents they then share with local and state media outlets with their own spin linked to such videos.
"Its a good day to let people know not to support Central Oregon Daily News and anyone that does business with them. Saxons and Hooker Creek have made it known they will be doing something about this. If i dont see more companies do the same soon ima just start showing up places."
When called, Saxon's Ron Henderson offered Mr. Richter's FB account is inaccurate. Henderson described being contacted by email by Ms. Kerry Adelle Gillette, a Physician Assistant Specialist in Bend, Oregon (see image). Henderson replied to her request not to support Central Oregon Daily News saying "Our community is mourning the loss of Barry. We have put all our advertising on hold."
Henderson also shared his concern regarding the history of the Central Oregon Peacekeepers, in specific, might seek to intimidate community members who didn't respond to such a plea favorably. Luke Richter's Facebook threat "If i dont see more companies do the same soon ima just start showing up" would seem to support such a concern on the part of local business owners.
Henderson was clear that he does not know Mr. Richter and has never been contacted by him, or spoken to him. "We responded to a post or thread and did not speak directly to anyone connected with this tragedy. We are very sad about losing a loved one, so Very painful. The family has now given permission to post the video on Central Oregon Daily so we can continue the dialogue and wait for a courts to decide. We pray for peace."?
The direct linkage between the District Attorney's Office and the Peacekeepers is described in the below article. For the Peacekeepers, of which only two are fulltime social anarchists with a series of Facebook pages promoting the organization as a non-registered local small business with pleas for donations always at the forefront of their posts, staying relevant is all-important.
Barry Washington had only moved from the Sacramento area to Central Oregon a month ago. He has no adult criminal record. That he was out that night and encountered the young man alleged to have shot and killed him has stunned the Bend community to its core.
Ian Cranston, whose employer (Nosler Bullets) has suspended him for the time being, is confirmed to have had a concealed handgun license (CHL) as issued by the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office. That permit, per DCSO policy, was revoked upon Cranston's arrest given the criminal charging. It is unknown at this time if Cranston listed his arrest / conviction on the CHL application.
Although DA John Hummel announced Cranston has no criminal record a public records check as well as a PRR to Benton County's court system shows this is inaccurate. Cranston, it appears, was arrested in Benton County on multiple charges of possession and intent to distribute a Schedule 1 drug (MDMA). In what may have been plea deal he plead to one count and was convicted. The court records likely, per Benton County, sealed as a result.
Cranston's racial beliefs are also in question. "Screenshots of Cranston’s posts were obtained by OPB, but could not be independently verified because the profile was no longer publicly viewable by Tuesday morning, following Cranston’s release from jail. Images from the now-closed social media account show numerous posts from 2011 and 2012 using the n-word. Another post, apparently created when Cranston was about 17, reads: “AR-15, here I come!!”
MFG/DELIVERY CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN SCHEDULE I
Location?OR / Court Date?02/10/2016 / Date of Offense?05/31/2013 / Court Case Number?CM1321371 / Court Case Description?BENTON / Court Disposition?CONVICTED Status:CLOSED / Court Offense?MFG/DELIVERY CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN SCHEDULE I / Court Fines?$20,000Show less about this case / Identifying Info on Record / Name on record?IAN MACKENZIE CRANSTON
It was Cranston's girlfriend who Mr. Washington was interested in and who was filming his second attempt to talk with her on the sidewalk when the argument broke out, punches thrown, and Cranston ultimately fatally shooting the young man. In the video one can hear the girlfriend telling someone near her that Washington had hit her. There are also racially charged words, to include the "N" word, in the video's audio.
"WARNING – WARNING – WARNING
"The video below includes the moment a shot was fired in downtown Bend just after midnight on Sept. 19, ultimately leading to the death of Barry Washington Jr.
"We have not edited the video other than to format it for the screen and to eliminate some expletives. An earlier version with some words bleeped out led some viewers to believe you could hear a racial slur. We have allowed one expletive for clarity.
"It was provided to Central Oregon Daily News by Allie Butler, the fiancé of Ian Mackenzie Cranston, the man accused in the shooting.
"We do not have any video from of moments leading up to the shooting to provide context."
https://centraloregondaily.com/%E2%96%B6%EF%B8%8F-video-of-fatal-shooting-in-downtown-bend/
Crime scene investigators initially charged Cranston with 2nd Degree Manslaughter based on what they had learned during the initial investigation. Mr. Hummel, wrongly under fire for the charging, has explained it takes a Grand Jury to hear the evidence presented and then, if the Grand Jury believes the charge should be elevated to Murder in the 1st Degree, make that decision. It is pointed out that such a charge requires it be proven the act was pre-meditated on the part of the shooter. And that the shooter did not possess a reasonable belief that he or his girlfriend was about to be physically harmed to the degree outlined by law, to include possibly being killed.
The Bend city council issued a statement that in part offers the incident was "entirely preventable". However, given three of the city council members are aligned with the Central Oregon Peacekeepers it is interesting the statement does not say what steps would have prevented the shooting / killing of Mr. Washington.
COBLA, which has as its law enforcement liaison its founder, Mr. Waites, has reached out to the FBI Special Agent in Charge - Portland, Oregon, regarding a possible federal hate crime investigation. Waites met with the FBI SAC this past summer as well as with the U.S. Attorney for Oregon in his effort to create meaningful bridges of communication and understanding in Central Oregon between law enforcement and communities of Color here.
Which is far more productive than threatening local businesses they can expect someone like Mr. Richter to "show up" outside their business if they don't buckle to his demands for a boycott.
***
When cops start pulling back
“This significant accomplishment [decline in reported crime] is a testament to the collaborative and innovative work being done in our community by law enforcement, parole and probation officers, mental health providers, drug and alcohol treatment professionals, and all community members.” - Statement from District Attorney John Hummel, KTVZ 21, January 14, 2021
"Police slowdowns may be extremely concerning from a public safety point of view for two reasons. First, even though slowdowns do not amount to full work stoppages, the Becker model of crime (1968) suggests that slowdowns may still have an effect on crime as the temporary reductions in police enforcement may signal to potential offenders that the probability of detection has temporarily decreased." - The Effect of Police Slowdowns on Crime, Andrea Cann Chandrasekher, Oxford Academy, American Law and Economics Review, Volume 18, Issue 2, 1 October 2016
What is not reported can be more concerning than what is reported
The FBI's 2019 UCR report is often quoted as a reliable measuring stick regarding crime statistics nationwide. "The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program collects the number of offenses that come to the attention of law enforcement for?violent crime?and?property crime, as well as data regarding?clearances?of these offenses. In addition, the FBI collects auxiliary information about these offenses (e.g., time of day of burglaries).?The?expanded offense data?include trends in both crime volume and crime rate per 100,000 inhabitants. Finally, the UCR Program collects?expanded homicide data, which includes information about homicide victims and offenders, weapons used, the circumstances surrounding the offenses, and justifiable homicides."
Read more: https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/topic-pages/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement
However, the FBI is quick to point out its statistics only reflect what is reported to them by local law enforcement agencies such as the Bend Police Department / the City of Bend.
The City of Bend hosts its own "Crime in Bend, Oregon" webpage. On its site it offers "Crime rate in Bend, OR The 2019 crime rate in Bend, OR is 135 (City-Data.com crime index), which is 2.0 times smaller than the U.S. average. It was higher than in 52.9% U.S. cities. The 2019 Bend crime rate fell by 7% compared to 2018. In the last 5 years Bend has seen decreasing violent crime and decline of property crime. See how dangerous Bend, OR is compared to the nearest cities...".
And as the Bend city council seeks to establish managed homeless camps within the city limits, one proposed to be positioned between two schools, it is keen on promoting how low the crime rate is in Bend these days to dispel parental concerns about such a "village" becoming a hub for criminal activity, both violent and non-violent (property). "Neighbors to the site off Ninth Street, including numerous staff at nearby Bend Senior High and Bear Creek Elementary School, are fighting the proposal, opposed to it being placed near two schools."
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/bend/2021/09/17/conceptual-3d-renderings-released-for-2-proposed-bend-homeless-villages/
Statistical significance or statistical lies?
"By their very nature, statistics can only be misused when the audience doesn't bother checking them. Statistics are?just a numerical summary of evidence that has been collected. ... It is by not presenting all of the information and selectively choosing definitions that statistics can appear to lie." -
"There are several undeniable truths about statistics: First?and foremost, they can be manipulated, massaged and misstated. ... Second, if bogus statistical information is repeated often enough, it eventually is considered to be true." -
What is not being reported in Bend’s crime massaging metrics?
Since the tragic death of George Floyd, the "Defund the Police" movement has birthed a nationwide response from law enforcement professionals and their agencies. And that response is to simply do what their job descriptions require of an officer, deputy sheriff, or agent. And that is to show up for work in the proper uniform, respond to calls assigned to them by 9-11 Dispatch, conduct a rudimentary investigation, and clear the call by either contact, report, or arrest.
Throughout the country and indeed throughout Oregon law enforcement officers, supported by their unions and city / county / state job descriptions, are now just responding to assigned calls and doing just what is required, period. Contrary to popular thought police officers do not have to "self-initiate" additional work such as traffic stops or community policing efforts. Officer evaluation reports commonly reflect what an officer does that is above and beyond the scope of her or his job description, but self-initiated effort is not required.
And law enforcement professionals know it is the self-initiated effort that most often results in drug seizures, outstanding warrant arrests, illegal firearms seizures, recovering missing children or adults, DUII arrests, and a long list of additional crime prevention citations and / or physical arrests that would not have occurred unless an officer was motivated to do more than just take assigned calls and clear them as quickly as possible.
"Almost immediately after Floyd’s death, Reuters found, police officers all but stopped making traffic stops. They approached fewer people they considered suspicious and noticed fewer people who were intoxicated, fighting, or involved with?drugs, records show. Some in the city, including police officers themselves, say the men and women in blue stepped back after Floyd’s death for fear that any encounter could become the next flashpoint.
“There isn’t a huge appetite for aggressive police work out there, and the risk/reward, certainly, we’re there and we’re sworn to protect and serve, but you also have to protect yourself and your family,” said Scott Gerlicher, a Minneapolis police commander who retired this year. “Nobody in the job or working on the job can blame those officers for being less aggressive.”
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-policing-minneapolis/
In the City of Bend's case the county district attorney, Mr. John Hummel, has in the past eighteen months, made it clear and in a very public manner that he thinks extraordinarily little of the Bend Police Department. Hummel, a self-identified social activist with ties to several of the most virulent "defund the police" personalities in Central Oregon, has chosen not to prosecute cases investigated by officers, deputies, state troopers, or agents that he has determined are "racists", or "white supremacists" or otherwise not to his liking.
For example, in an official letter addressed to Chief Mike Krantz, Bend Police Department, Hummel excoriated officers involved in a criminal trespass complaint involving the Central Oregon Peacekeepers, a Facebook based self-appointed "security force" for local social justice personalities and groups. "Mike," Hummel wrote in closing, "I know it is a difficult time to be a police officer. I do not suggest it is easy for you and your officers to be criticized on a daily basis, and to have this criticism aired in the news and on social media. That having been said, the response to criticism can be to lash out at the people criticizing you or to lean into the criticism with the aim of working with your critics to make the Bend Police Department the most ethical, just, and effective police department in the country. If you want to do the latter, I'll work with you to make that happen. Let me know if you want my help to work with racial and social justice advocates to chart a positive path forward for your department and our community."
https://www.opb.org/pdf/Emerson%20Road%20charging%20decison%20letter%20to%20Chief%20Krantz%207_1627498867637.pdf
What the district attorney did not recount was, among other actions and public statements, are his public performances in the local media. These by their very tone and tenor discourage law enforcement administrators with the depth of education, training, and experience that Chief Krantz has not to trust him on any level. This to include public oratory like this gem from Mr. Hummel at what became a riot in Bend last summer. "BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) --After a nearly 12-hour standoff between hundreds of protesters and federal agents, several officials are speaking out, and one of the most forthright is Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel. Hummel told News Channel 21 on Thursday, "They wanted the troops from Seattle and Portland to come in, they wanted the showdown, they wanted to storm in, they wanted to put our community at risk -- and that's what disgusted me." Unfortunately for the DA his assessment, upon detailed examination, was inaccurate and only served to escalate the situation.
Josh Marquis was a prosecutor in Oregon for 38-years. He was Chief Deputy in Bend from 1990 to 1994 before being appointed DA in Astoria. "Hummel is a total disaster and while [Sheriff] Nelson is a little bit of a showboat, this kid [Hummel] is just mouthing platitudes."?
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/2020/08/13/gov-brown-da-hummel-lash-out-at-feds-over-handling-of-bend-ice-protest/
Hummel's offer as made to Chief Krantz rings hollow, at best, given his 2020 assessment of Mike Krantz's hiring by the City of Bend as broadcast on KBND News. "BEND, OR --?Bend’s new Police Chief, Mike Krantz was on-the-job starting yesterday. Krantz spent many years with the Portland Police Bureau…a hiring that did not sit well with the Deschutes County D.A. John Hummel. He says the selection of Krantz comes at a time when thousands of people are protesting and demanding social justice in Central Oregon. Hummel says during the job interview with Krantz, Portland Police were tear gassing protestors and that sends a wrong message. Hummel says he called Krantz about 10 days ago and the two had a good and frank discussion. Hummel says they both agreed they can disagree with each other, but they can also, in fact, work together."
Read more: https://kbnd.com/kbnd-news/local-news-feed/523438
Not addressed nor even mentioned by the district attorney is this.?The Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly (COBLA), a registered non-profit organization headquartered in Bend. COBLA early on met with with local law enforcement agencies to include the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, the Bend Police Department, the Redmond Police Department, the Prineville Police Department, the FBI Office in Portland, and the U.S. Attorney's Office, Oregon. Mr. Riccardo Waites is the organization's law enforcement liaison with these agencies. COBLA attended the Verbal Judo de-escalation training put on by the Sheriff’s Office shortly after George Floyd’s death; Mr. Waites' input has resulted in increased Minority hiring with the Sheriff's Office. COBLA likewise met with Chief Krantz at Bend PD and afterward applauded the chief’s renaming a department K9 animal as the name used was insensitive to the BIPOC community.?In Redmond, COBLA met with the city manger and police chief and assisted in providing security cameras and moral support to a black family that was being harassed. Redmond PD increased its neighborhood patrols and conducting an intensive investigation of the harassment case. In Prineville, Oregon (Crook County), COBLA worked intimately with the Prineville Police Department to calm the emotions during that town's Black Lives Matter demonstrations. In short, Central Oregon law enforcement is dedicated to meaningful Change and is active in working with constructive, positive, and critical social justice advocates - something John Hummel is either unaware or dismissive of as these same agencies won't interface with his organization of choice.
The disconnect between the District Attorney and his chosen social advocates and that of Central Oregon and federal law enforcement’s cordial and respectful affiliation with COBLA is as stark as it is confrontational.
Read more: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/you-me-we-de-oppresso-liber-greg-walker/
The District Attorney - a conflict of interest?
A simple background check shows Mr. Luke Richter has lived in Bend since 2010.
He is not a property owner, and it appears his education consists of high school or perhaps a GED.
Recently he has stated in a local radio interview his intention to arm himself with a firearm for self-defense (a noteworthy thought process for a “peacekeeper”); and he shared during his early years he was often in trouble with the law.?His radio interview is well worth listening to given his political aspirations and quote in a past article where he offers, in his opinion, all politicians are liars.
Mr. Richter is also on the public record as to having participated in the ongoing Portland riots. Riots that continue to gut the Rose City as a safe place to live/visit as well as bottomed it out economically.
A review of his several Facebook pages offers he started the Central Oregon Peacekeepers, originally titled simply C.O.P. (per Richter the C.O.P. acronym was thought to be funny) as a joke of sorts.
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In his post on that topic he states, in part, that he could not believe people were taking he and his co-founders (Michael Satcher, white) seriously when the FB page went active.
Mr. Richter is on the public record as hating law enforcement officers. The Central Oregon Peacekeepers have posted on both their COPK FB page and their personal FB pages statements to this effect.?For example, this nugget from Richter, the result of his going to “Facebook jail” for 30 days due to the offensive comments and memes he posted.
Luke Richter -
“F*** 12, f*** zuckerf***, f*** racists, f*** anyone who questions what i do.”
And this as directed at the Bend Police Department and its employees.?
“Since Bend PD seems to constantly know my name whenever they approach where I am or show up where i am i got a couple things to say.
1. You must be bored as hell
2. I hope you told your boss this is a waste of time
3. We will never respect you
Richter, a self-described Social Democrat with ties to the Social Democratic Party (Portland and Bend chapters), has recently boasted of traveling to Portland to provide supplies and support to the Marxist influenced Black Lives Matter and ANTIFA protestors / rioters. The Social Democratic Party is, upon study, the evolution of the 1960s Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) movement, and the Weather Underground. Both organizations and movements self-identified themselves as Marxist / Communists.
Read more: https://depts.washington.edu/moves/sds_map.shtml
In the meantime, Portland's police commissioner, Mayor Ted Wheeler, now working closely with the FBI to curb gun and other related violence in a city , recently announced he was rehiring retired PPB officers to fill the increasing manpower gap brought about by his and the city council's earlier lack of support for law enforcement. “I believe our police bureau is under-resourced,” Wheeler said. “I want an evidenced-based approach to how many officers we need to hire and what gaps we have in the bureau that currently need to be filled.”
"Wheeler also said he plans to request money for police body-worn cameras this fall and that he wants to expand Portland Street Response. Both Bend PD and the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office added body cameras this past year. By doing so both agencies (Redmond PD, Prineville PD, and the Crook County Sheriff's Office have long used body cameras) have reduced the cell phone camera provocations of groups like the Peacekeepers as seen in the body cam footage of Michael Satcher's actions and behavior when cited by Corporal Spano. In an interesting reversal of support Peacekeeper Mike Satcher has posted his new position that body cameras for cops "don't work" as cops don't care and will do whatever they want. This from the same individual who initially decried the Bend Police Department for NOT pursuing body cameras for its officers.
Portland's police have followed the national trend as described by Reuters. They answer assigned calls for service; refer citizens to file remote reports online; and in conjunction with what the police commissioner dictates to the police chief on any given day "the thin blue line" abides strictly by its contract with the city. Gang violence along with clashes between Leftists and Rightists on nearly any issue both disagree on are sometimes simply monitored regardless of the damage done to property and "mutual combat" incidents.
"On Saturday afternoon, a far-right protest in downtown Portland devolved into?a violent brawl?involving bear mace, baseball bats, and brandished firearms.Onlooking police officers declined to intervene." - https://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2020/08/24/28764270/wheeler-responds-to-criticism-of-police-inaction-during-saturday-brawl
And -
"The focus on staffing and gun violence comes as shootings and homicides continue to soar in Portland and nationwide.
"Through the end of August, the Portland Police Bureau logged 837 shooting incidents and sixty homicides for the year. That’s compared to 488 shootings and thirty-three homicides at the same time last year."
Read more: https://www.opb.org/article/2021/09/17/portland-mayor-wants-to-bring-back-retired-police-officers-to-help-fill-shortage-address-gun-violence/
Read more: https://www.facebook.com/Central-Oregon-Peacekeepers-106204461146894
Michael Satcher, co-founder of the COPK, has personal reasons for his "All Cops Are Bastards" actions and beliefs. Arrested in Texas in 2008 on a family violence with injury to a family member charge, in 2010 Satcher agreed to plead guilty under the deferred prosecution option he was offered. In a recent post on the Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly FB page Satcher confirmed his conviction. "Yes, I was arrested for "family violence" in Texas. The family member was my brother-in-law, and I put him in a restraining hold when he attacked my sister. His father was a cop, and I ended up getting arrested.”
However, a public records request offers a more detailed and truthful account of the assault, a crime that in theory prevents Satcher from purchasing or owning a firearm.
Satcher is currently awaiting criminal trial in Crook County, Oregon, on multiple charges that include assault, harassment, and interfering with a police officer. He has shared with his Facebook audience that he indeed did commit the crimes noted and he believes he will be convicted.
"Satcher, 42, was charged with disorderly conduct, interfering with a police officer and harassment. He was reportedly released on bail."
Read more: https://nuggetnews.com/Content/Current-News/Current-News/Article/Sisters-man-arrested-during-Prineville-rally/5/5/29902
And according to Peacekeeper Luke Richter "Luke Richter, president of the Central Oregon Peacekeepers, provided the following statement to NewsChannel 21 Sunday evening regarding the arrests:
"Two Central Oregon BLM?leaders faced an attack and violence from counter-protesters. The people defending them were arrested as a result, while counter-protesters who instigated the attack were allowed to walk free."
However "The people defending them...", the COPK, are not acknowledged nor endorsed as a private sector defense force by Oregon's Department of Public Safety, Standards, and Training (DPSST). According to DPSST "You are correct that these types of organizations do not fall under our jurisdiction, so we do not have any recourse for compliance and rely on law enforcement for this.?The public can look up the status of any private security or any other DPSST certified individual – to include law enforcement in IRIS.?Access to IRIS is available on our website and it is very user friendly, requiring no login."
The last time I looked the District Attorney's Office is part of the law enforcement community...
Satcher is also facing civil trial in Deschutes County. The lawsuit brought by the City of Bend regarding Satcher's claim of being a legitimate journalist who should not have to pay a multi-thousand dollar bill he incurred data mining the Oregon public records law process. A hefty bill Deschutes County district attorney John Hummel dismissed in favor of Satcher. The dismissal leading to City Attorney Mary Winters filing the civil suit. "But a group of racial justice activists claim they are being treated differently than others who seek records, and that access to government transparency should be an essential service in a city where police oversight happens behind closed doors. Winters said the records at stake are being released in weekly batches now, even as the city takes the activist who requested them, Mike Satcher, to court to recover the $3,600 fee it charged him."
Read more: https://www.opb.org/article/2021/04/05/bend-sues-activist-in-public-records-fight/
In 2020, both Mike Satcher and Luke Richter were named, and their actions described in a detailed Bend PD after action report regarding what became a riot when "social justice advocates" as well as "progressive" members of the Bend city council and...DA John Hummel interfered with federal law enforcement agents serving warrants on two Mexican nationals in the United States illegally. Both were subjects of a nationwide ICE enforcement operation targeting domestic violence suspects. Hummel, self-identified in his role as the Deschutes County district attorney, offered an interview that lambasted the enforcement action, further isolated himself and his office from local law enforcement as well as federal enforcement agencies.
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/2020/08/13/deschutes-da-hummel-disgusted-by-federal-response-to-ice-protest/
"[Hummel]?should resign today," Homan, a retired acting ICE director, told "Fox & Friends" Thursday. "It is disgusting.?He is in direct conflict of his?duties as a district attorney?to, number one, protect his?community.?Number two, protect law?enforcement and the rule of law." In an interview with an ICE spokesperson, it was affirmed one of the suspects, who had illegally returned to the United States after being deported previously, was again deported within days of his arrest. The other, after a hearing in Seattle before an Immigration judge, was released to his family in Bend but required to attend all future hearings and to obey all U.S. laws or be re-arrested and deported.
Read more: https://www.foxnews.com/us/oregon-ice-protest-bend-homan
ICE enforcement actions continue in Central Oregon despite Hummel's provocative statements in what many offer is his campaign to become Oregon's next U.S. Attorney. According to ICE, however, they will refrain from announcing their presence in Central Oregon, specifically Bend, given the compromise of law enforcement sensitive information provided to the Bend Police Department and the district attorney's clear lack of understanding of what their agents are mandated by federal law to do, even under the Biden Administration's new and evolving immigration guidelines regarding such operations.
ICE statement on August 13, 2020 (attributable to ICE spokesperson):
“ICE continues to target public safety threats and immigration violators. The two individuals arrested by ICE have criminal records that include convictions for assault, harassment, coercion, and criminal trespassing. They are also repeat immigration violators who were previously encountered by U.S. immigration officials and granted voluntary return to their home countries.”
?Definition of Operation Cross Check:?https://www.ice.gov/identify-and-arrest/fugitive-operations
Most recently, a complaint filed by Michael Satcher against a former Bend PD officer was dismissed. Corporal Josh Spano had cited Satcher for criminal trespass, a citation John Hummel later dismissed. Why? In part as he chose to believe the officer was a right-wing extremist due to a key chain he was carrying on his duty belt and because the Peacekeepers said so.
Spano was exonerated on the most serious allegation with the other nine made by Mr. Satcher determined to be unfounded. The 70-odd page internal investigation included federal input as well as the United States Army given the officer, well decorated to include a Valor award, served as a combat medic in Iraq. Where the Peacekeepers were outraged at the findings Corporal Spano, who had interviewed with the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office prior to the complaint filed against him, was ultimately hired away from the Bend Police Department. "Josh Spano applied for the Sheriff’s Office in in March, 2021. He then interviewed for the deputy position. After his interview, we started his background process. The complaint against Spano came up during the hiring process. His background was completed after receiving the (unfounded/not sustained) findings from the Bend Police Department investigation. Spano was given a formal job offer on August 13 after completing and passing all of the other requirements," affirmed the Sheriff's Office.
Central Oregon speaks out
The Central Oregon community-at-large has since spoken out on the friction between the Bend Police Department and the District Attorney's Office. "The spat between DA John Hummel and Police Chief Mike Krantz is pushing the political temperature up at the moment. Bend Police sought charges of trespassing against several protesters and a houseless individual while?clearing the encampment?at NE Second and Emerson Avenue on June 23. As is the case in any of these situations, the Bend Police tasked the DA to file the charges against individuals they arrested in course of those duties. In this case, DA Hummel didn't file those charges."
Read more: https://www.bendsource.com/bend/das-office-bend-pd-need-to-be-on-the-same-page/Content?oid=15150947
Read more: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/peacekeepers-allegations-determined-false-war-hero-cop-walker/
Read more: OPB - https://www.opb.org/article/2021/08/16/investigation-clears-bend-police-corporal-of-alleged-ties-to-extremism/
A previous complaint made by COPK agitators against another Bend police officer was found, after an extensive internal investigation to include camera footage, was likewise shown to be false. "Witnesses claim that Corporal Frickey of the Bend Police Department choked?a woman of color at a rally on Oct. 3 by pulling her backward by the strap of her backpack, and for a moment, causing?her to lose consciousness."
Read more: https://centraloregondaily.com/complaints-filed-against-officer-following-weekend-rally-bend-pd-stands-by-actions/
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/government-politics/2020/10/08/bend-pd-release-videos-deny-any-officers-wrongdoing-in-wake-of-pilot-butte-melee/
Doxxing, shaming, libeling, and slandering - the social anarchist cookbook
Hummel is on the public record as having posted on the Central Oregon Peacekeeper Facebook page and having been interviewed by the COPK. In the past DA Hummel attacked this journalist in specific when asked to be interviewed about the Peacekeepers. Mr. Hummel's response, sent from his official email address, was this. "Mr. Walker – you are not a journalist.?You are a campaign operative for Sheriff Nelson and you are conducting opposition research – nothing wrong with this.?I conduct opposition research in all my campaigns, as do all quality campaigners. Your attempt to hide your campaign work under the label of journalist is what concerns me. In addition, your history of disgraceful and insensitive comments on social media tell me all I need to know about you. I will not be communicating with you about the below topic, or any other faux journalism project you profess to be working on."
Note: As the author / co-author of now 17 published books, over 300 published articles, the founder and executive editor of two national magazines, the chief editor of one specialty military journal, and among other credentials having served as both the senior researcher and as a guest on CBS "60 Minutes" with the late Ed Bradley (1995/1996)...
And in October 2019 interviewed by Ms. Brooke Baldwin, CNN, regarding then President Trump's abandonment of the Kurdish People in Syria (https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/10/23/greg-walker-soldier-fought-alongside-kurds-trump-syria-nr-vpx.cnn)...
And by KATU - Portland on the same subject...
And my affiliation with the Southern Poverty Law Center as a contributing journalist long ago combating extremist activities in the U.S. military - https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/1999/steven-barry-becomes-important-figure-paramilitary-underground
I find the district attorney's opinion regarding my now 40-year career in journalism to be spurious, at best. As a decorated and honorably retired Oregon law enforcement officer with specific experience with both the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office and Bend Police Department dating back to 1985, I found it odd a sitting district attorney would have no issues being interviewed by one side and disregard the other side of the story based on his personal and apparently uninformed bias.
Mr. Richter and Mr. Satcher have likewise rejected offers to be interviewed.
It is also worth noting John Hummel has a long track record of recusing himself from cases he believes he is somehow compromised from prosecuting. However, in the case of any criminal case where either Mr. Richter or Mr. Satcher is involved the DA stands fast...dismissing and then castigating local law enforcement as being "obsessed" with the group.
Read more: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/tyler-throwaway-human-being-them-karen-jacques-greg-walker/
Read more: https://www.facebook.com/106204461146894/posts/this-morning-a-team-of-peacekeepers-sat-down-for-a-productive-and-exciting-meeti/123025812798092/)
The Deschutes County District Attorney has dismissed or dropped charges filed by Bend PD officers against COPK founders Luke Richter and Michael Satcher as a matter of routine. At the same time the district attorney, who recently announced he is not running for re-election, appears to overlook what social justice "advocates" like Richter and Satcher have done to the City of Portland in the past two years. To include a 93% increase in crime to include gun violence, property damage, riot, arson, and the step-by-step dismantling of the Portland Police Bureau ability to do more than...the bare minimum where their job description is concerned.
"PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Portland saw a 60 percent increase in the number of homicides in 2020 compared to 2019.The 56 homicides the police bureau reported in 2020 is a massive jump from the 35 reported in 2019 and more than double the numbers reported in 2018 and 2017."?
Read more: https://www.koin.com/is-portland-over/looking-at-the-data-portland-crime-during-the-pandemic/
And in Portland's case the city's residents have the same problem with their county DA. "Prosecutors actually have dropped even more cases than the dashboard shows - The District Attorney’s Office said Wednesday that it has issued felony or misdemeanor charges in 128 protest cases through Oct. 5. But court records show prosecutors have subsequently decided to drop all charges in at least twenty-two of these cases, some that have included allegations of riot, burglary and unlawful use of a weapon."
Read more: "PORTLAND, OR?– Courts in Portland are proving once again that the city is not so tough on crime, despite being the epicenter of criticism when it pertains to unchecked riots" - https://www.lawenforcementtoday.com/portland-da-drops-charges-against-15-more-suspects-arrested-for-rioting/
Read more: https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2020/10/multnomah-county-da-declines-to-prosecute-70-of-portland-protest-cases.html
Crime reporting in Bend, Oregon - accurate or skewed?
As residents in Bend demand their city council members and mayor not to approve the emplacement of managed homeless camps in neighborhoods with nearby elementary and high schools, the question of what crimes come with the homeless populations and their make-shift enclaves bring with them is again an issue. Both the district attorney and city-sponsored glowing reports of declining criminal activities are meant to assure residents and businesses that the Bend Police Department, in part, is responsible for this achievement. However, retired local law enforcement officers as well as serving sworn officers offer a different storyline.
They describe a slowdown of self-initiated neighborhood patrols and traffic stops throughout Deschutes County and this slowdown is a direct response to the demonstrated lack of meaningful support and encouragement by, among other community leaders, John Hummel. "No one wants to put their livelihood and their careers at risk for making a routine traffic stop, discovering the driver or occupants are people of color, and then being identified as the stop or contact being racially motivated," one retired police officer shared with me. "I've heard of guys who would normally issue citations simply handing back any documentation provided to them and telling the driver 'Have a lovely day. It's just not worth it to get hammered in the media, on social media, have your case thrown out by the DA here, and be subjected to internal affairs investigations that ultimately show the officer did nothing wrong."
Bend's police department like so many others is seeing early retirements and some of its best officers either leaving the profession entirely or laterally transferring to agencies and communities where they are welcome.
Again, from Reuters' own investigation - "Nonetheless, Reuters found, the drop in police-initiated interactions was steeper and more sudden than the drop in the number of officers. By July 2020, the number of encounters begun by officers had dropped 70% from the year before; the number of stops fell 76%.
"Drawing a definitive link between police pullbacks and increasing crime can be complicated. Homicide rates shot up throughout the United States beginning in the summer of 2020 – not just in cities where the police scaled back traffic stops, but also in patches of rural America and other areas where patrolling remained unchanged. But three law enforcement experts interviewed by Reuters say a less active police force can most definitely impact community safety."
Several Central Oregon's senior police administrators, past and present, agree. Self-initiated community policing and simply good old fashion police work going beyond the job description has dropped over the past two years. The result is that the crime statistics noted by the district attorney and City of Bend, for example, are inaccurate. "If it's not reported then it didn't happen," a now retired county sheriff points out. All across the country today cops are protecting themselves, their families, their careers, by doing just what they are required to do. The Portland Police Bureau is an example of this.
Can this trend be documented? Yes. Genuinely concerned community members, leaders, activists, and advocates need only ask for an agency's internal officer performance metrics across the sworn officer employee body...or just ask Central Oregon's senior police administrators what they are hearing and seeing within their own departments. Categories that mirror officer performances according to the Oxford Institute study, include:
Ticket-writing - the issuance of criminal misdemeanor citations in lieu of physical arrest as well as parking and traffic infraction / criminal citations. Criminal misdemeanor citations in specific are often self-initiated traffic stops that reveal other crimes or the evidence of criminal activity, and these can often result in preventing an impending or ongoing crime from continuing.
Physical arrests for misdemeanor and felony assaults - such arrests have been found to increase during a slowdown because officers have backed away from aggressive self-initiated investigations on the front end (i.e. traffic stops) and violators, habitual or otherwise, have learned from watching the news and from feeling less "heat" from local law enforcement that their chance of getting away with such crimes is in their favor.
Even if ticket-writing or a lessening of proactive patrolling and self-initiated cases have decreased, even "moderate increases in criminal disorder" tells habitual and potential violators / offenders results in "...potential offenders [taking this as their signal] the probability of detection from activity levels of patrol force officers rather than from the activity of non-patrol force officers or city ticket agents [is greatly diminished]."
It is helpful to note the Oxford study is clear regarding its elasticities of crime with respect to the activities, or lack of activities by the police. These "...are based on crime responses to exogenous decreases in police activity." As the study's author points out all "other estimates in the literature are based on crime responses to exogenous increases in police activity. Thus, these results are generalizable to the extent that crime responds symmetrically to increases as opposed to decreases in policing activity."
If it is not discovered and reported/by the police officers on the beat...it is not happening...when in fact it really is.
And homeless camps, sponsored and managed or simply "off the grid and off limits to the police for social justice reasons", are metric proven havens for criminal activities of all categories. These to include theft, rape, assault, arson, drug and alcohol related crimes, animal abuse, and homeless-on-homeless harassment to include property damage. For example, "BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A 42-year-old Bend man has been arrested on assault and other charges in a stabbing Saturday that left another man with life-threatening injuries at a homeless camp on the city’s Juniper Ridge property, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said Sunday."
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/crime-courts/2021/03/20/suspect-detained-in-stabbing-at-juniper-ridge-transient-camp/
And -
"Lindsey McAnulty of Central Oregon told NewsChannel 21 her family moved out of the area immediately after their camp was almost lit on fire. This whole area is known for being relatively safe, especially for the homeless community," she said. "I have so much experience in this area -- never was messed with at all. Then, all of a sudden, our lives are being threatened. Why? I'm pregnant, and we have dogs." - https://ktvz.com/news/deschutes-county/2021/04/21/reports-of-violence-and-aggression-at-homeless-camp-in-sisters/
And -
"Police had been working since last September with the 46-year-old man living in the tent, Burleigh said. Officers coordinated several outreach contacts, along with Deschutes County Health Services staff, “in an attempt to engage him in ongoing services and connect him to available community resources,” Burleigh said in a news release." - https://ktvz.com/news/bend/2021/04/02/man-who-wouldnt-leave-bend-homeless-camp-jailed-on-criminal-mischief-charge/
COVID inequalities in masking and vaccination mandates
And the homeless populations are not immune to COVID. At the same time Oregon, in specific, excludes the homeless from mandatory masking both indoors and outdoors and there is no statewide, much less community wide program, to track vaccinations of the homeless, this highly mobile population represents "Super Spreader" concerns. "Many?outbreaks?occurred in homeless shelters and unsheltered people have been infected as well. One study showed the mortality rate of homeless people in New York was?75% higher?than the city’s rate. It’s just that an accounting of these deaths, like homeless people themselves, seems to have slipped through the cracks."
Read more: https://www.statnews.com/2021/03/11/the-uncounted-people-who-are-homeless-are-invisible-victims-of-covid-19/
COVID has seen law enforcement officers and support staff personnel in Central Oregon placed either in isolation at home, in part due to the numbers of unvaccinated citizens they come into contact with on a daily basis. "The?National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund?said in a recent midyear?report?that Covid-19 is the leading cause of death for officers nationwide. According to the nonprofit, from Jan. 1 to June 30, 71 officers died of Covid-related causes, more than firearm and traffic-related incidents combined. The number has continued climbing since the report was released, with 133 officers having died of Covid to date this year, the nonprofit said." - https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/it-doesn-t-have-happen-covid-leading-cause-death-among-n1279289
In the Portland area a multi-pronged effort has long been underway to provide COVID related services to the houseless / homeless with the intent of mitigating infection. "On Oct. 29, Multnomah County also announced that in partnership with the Joint Office of Homeless Services, the Urban League of Portland has opened a motel-based shelter specifically designed for Black adults who face increased risks from COVID-19..."I think it’s really important to continue to highlight the fact that none of this response would be possible if we didn’t have people coming to do the work,” Jolin said. That includes staff who work in shelters, but also community members at partner organizations — and other community volunteers who’ve stepped up to help.
“All of it has depended on the partnerships with those organizations and a lot of volunteers to make it work,” Jolin said."
Read more: https://www.streetroots.org/news/2020/11/04/new-cases-covid-19-among-homeless-remain-low-officials-say
Note: As a military veteran who receives his healthcare from the VA medical system I was eager to be vaccinated once the Bend VA rural clinic was able to offer the first vaccine available. My wife, a now retired VA nurse, worked daily with COVID patients at the VA hospital in Portland and I learned an enormous amount about the COVID virus and its follow-on mutations from her. Elderly veterans such as myself are vulnerable to COVID infection, especially those of us who have diagnosed medical issues the virus can take advantage of.
Where some folks cannot receive the current vaccinations for their own medical reasons, or for personal reasons to include religious beliefs, I am among the first to encourage those who can be vaccinated to do so. Vaccination - as we learned in the military - is meant to protect the individual and the unit in order to safeguard the war-fighting capability of the Armed Forces. The same applies to First Responders, healthcare workers, and our public servants such as city government employees.
Do the research, do the homework, talk with your personal physician or medical provider of Trust, and be vaccinated if at all possible, please?
Bad hires make bad cops - but smearing all cops because of bad hires is...ignorant
Again, from the Reuters' investigative report which focuses, in part, on policing in Minneapolis post George Floyd's death- "The distrust combusted when Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, killing him in an episode captured on film. Chauvin was convicted of murder in April; three fellow officers await trial for?aiding and abetting in Floyd’s?death.
"Within days, policing here was transformed.
"Interactions between officers and the public typically start in one of two ways: either someone calls seeking help – usually by dialing 911 – or an officer sees something and acts. To measure the change in policing, Reuters examined millions of dispatch and crime records from the city’s police force that track how officers spend their time. The pattern was stark: Within days of Floyd’s death, the number of stops and other encounters initiated by city patrolmen plunged to their lowest point in years.
"Elder, the police spokesman, said the change should be unsurprising at a time when the department was overwhelmed by rioting.
"But records show the pullback continued long after the unrest ended. In May, the most recent month for which complete records were available, officers initiated about 58% fewer encounters than they did in the same month the year before.
"The number of traffic stops they conducted was down 85% over the same period. Business checks — in which officers stop at a business to talk to employees and customers — were down 76%. The number of people the police stopped for acting suspiciously also dropped 76%."
What is the best course of action going forward?
The Bend City Council and the mayor should be encouraged to meet in closed session with both the Sheriff Shane Nelson and Chief Mike Krantz. The council should also request input from the FBI Special Agent in Charge’s office in Portland, Oregon, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice – Oregon, to further review local crime statistics and if these are indeed being affected in the negative by ill-advised, biased, and perhaps purely socio-political influences on law enforcement in Central Oregon.
In addition, retired police chief Jim Porter, now a strong advocate on the creation of two managed homeless projects in Bend, and Chief Mike Krantz, might also sit down with the city council. This to compare notes as to how best to work in unity and with a sense of frankness that promotes a better understanding of the multitude of concerns and considerations managed homeless properties face. If addressed openly and without bias toward any one group or individual – such a "pow-wow" could result in far greater inter-agency cooperation as well as a return to proactive community policing for all those residents of Bend, to include the houseless / homeless seeking to reintegrate themselves into the greater Central Oregon community at large.
"Managed villages for Oregon are proven that they are a solution," said Jim Porter, former Bend police chief." Porter is now with Central Oregon Villages, a nonprofit that helps find shelter for the unsheltered, and is a potential vendor to manage the proposed villages. The Bend Church is a financial sponsor of Central Oregon Villages. According to Pastor Jen Stuart "We are currently under the Church for non-profit status and waiting for the federal approval. We've sent in all paperwork. I just found out this morning that the website is up. We will be adding more information but here ya go!?www.covillages.org"
Read more: https://ktvz.com/news/bend/2021/09/17/conceptual-3d-renderings-released-for-2-proposed-bend-homeless-villages/
It is worth the time, effort, and investment for all responsible stakeholders in Bend to repair the poor relationships between Deschutes County law enforcement and the District Attorney's Office with the announcement John Hummel is moving on. As noted in the Bend Source Weekly "These times we find ourselves in are hot across all levels of the political spectrum, to be sure, and with that comes a feeling of instability. We'd prefer to see less instability, however, from the two entities tasked with managing criminal—or not-so-criminal—activity in the community. The community deserves better policy and better communication from both sides."
Author bio
Greg Walker is no stranger to Central Oregon. Relocating to Bend from the Republic of Panama in 1985, the honorably retired "Green Beret" (1980-2005) served the community first as a reserve officer / SWAT instructor for the Bend Police Department and then the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office. In 1996, Walker was the honor graduate of Oregon Police Academy Class #209. He worked as a community policing officer for the City of Astoria's large Hispanic community in Blue Ridge and Emerald Heights. After the attacks on 9/11, Walker deployed with his unit to Kuwait and then Iraq (2002-2004), returning to law enforcement with the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office as a deputy sheriff and then criminal intelligence detective.
In 2004, Walker served as an interim director for Central Oregon Veterans Outreach, a non-profit dedicated to assisting all homeless / houseless in Central Oregon. He is also a long-time supporter of the Central Oregon Veterans Ranch on which he has recently authored a story for the Sisters Nugget News.
Greg medically retired from the Sheriff's Office in 2005 due to his military service related wounds and injuries. Relocating to Portland for care and treatment he completed his second college degree at Portland State University. From 2009 until 2018 he worked professionally with our nation's most seriously injured, wounded, or made ill service members, veterans, and their families as a DoD trained and certified Warrior Care case manager and advocate
In 2003, Greg was adopted by the Nez Perce tribe as a Warrior-Brother. In 2021, he received his Nez Perce name from tribal elder Wilfred Scott during the annual Chief Red Heart ceremony in Washington State.
Today Mr. Walker lives and writes from his home in Sisters, Oregon, along with his service pup, Tommy.
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Published Author
3 年"Nothing we can do..." - https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2021/10/opinion-my-neighborhood-plagued-by-gunfire-needs-more-from-portland-city-council.html?outputType=amp
Published Author
3 年As in Portland it is on Bend - feckless mayor...clueless city council...https://www.koin.com/news/special-reports/ppb-officer-numbers-continue-to-drop-heres-why-some-say-theyre-leaving/amp/